Of Scrolls and Secrets
by Zydureito
Summary: Some things are just so unexpected... Naruto and Ino.
1. Goddamn the library!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto… If I did, there would be no Sakura. Mwahaha.

Author's notes: The story, and plot, which by the way isn't clear yet, is mine. Any similarity with other stories is purely unintentional. This is a Naruto/Ino by the way… so heads up for those who ain't interested with the pairing. Now is the perfect time for you to click the 'Back' button.

I decided to write a story about the pair because… well… I'm addicted to them now. Mwahaha. And there seems to be a shortage of stories about the pairing. Mwahaha.

**Read and Review, please?**

on with the show!

* * *

..Inside the Konoha Public Library.

**

* * *

**

"What the _fuck_ am I doing here!"

Naruto Uzumaki cursed out loud for the umpteenth time.

"Of all the missions given out for the day! I get the _most_ pointless, _most_ godforsaken - !"

"Naruto Uzumaki!" screeched a bespectacled formidable-looking librarian. With the crisp two-piece suit, thick, black eyeglasses, gray hair held up tightly in a bun, and a stern, thou-shalt-not-make-noise-or-else expression on her face... she was formidable-looking indeed.

"You have just been in this library for _ten minutes_!", she glared contemptuously at the spiky, blonde genin currently sitting on the floor, cradling several scrolls.

"This is the twenty-fifth time I have asked you to _please_. Please. Keep. Quiet!" she shouted at the rude boy who was frowning up at her.

"Well, that's the _longest_ time I've ever been inside here! Not to mention the first time I've ever set foot in this boring hellhole!" Naruto shouted with equal force, not bothering to keep his voice down despite the numerous warnings he had already received.

_'It's not like the old hag could do anything to me, anyway!'_

The _old hag_ gasped at the genin's words.

"I shall not allow the use of inappropriate language in this sacred,"

- Naruto rolled his eyes -

"SACRED ground!" Her nostrils flared as she watched the young nin mimic her shamelessly.

"I'll have you know that I could very well tell your jounin sensei how _awful_ you've performed in your genin mission!"

At these words, Naruto snapped back to face her. A look of disbelief etched on his face.  
The librarian smirked victoriously. She had obviously struck a nerve.

"Now that I have your undivided attention, I would greatly appreciate it if you continued placing those scrolls," she pointed at the bundle in his arms, "..on the proper shelves."

Naruto mumbled and cursed under his breath.

".._And_ after you're done with that... you can start cleaning those documents over there."  
Her bony finger pointed to a pile. No wait. A _glorious_ mountain of yellowing, fungus-infested, Konoha Library scrolls to her right.

Naruto gaped at the sight, and stood up to protest. He opened his mouth, a string of curses forming at the tip of his tongue -

"And make sure you do it _quietly_!" she silenced him, a sneer on her wrinkled face.  
"You're supposed to be a Leaf Nin! Practice some discipline, for your sake, lest you want me to write a horrible," she emphasized, "_horrible_ report to your sensei that will ensure you a slot at the academy for the years to come!"

She glared one last time at the loud-mouthed nin before pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose, and stalking away, occasionally snapping at some people who were reading or memorizing jutsus aloud.

Naruto continued to glare at the spot where the hateful woman once was, before turning around and sighing heavily.

_'Better get this done, and over with...Why oh, why do I have to get stuck with this task?_'

He grumbled inwardly.

_'Kakashi-sensei just had to give me this assignment!'_

He snorted at the memory of the white-haired jounin. The older nin unbelievably convinced Naruto that it was a heroic mission... If it weren't for the idea, implanted in his head by the sly instructor, of a cursed volume of encyclopedia terrorizing the people within the Konoha Public Library, he wouldn't even be caught dead near the building.

He sighed audibly. _'A mission is still a mission..'_

With the thought of torching the whole place once he became Hokage, Naruto Uzumaki set out to work.

Still…

* * *

**"Goddamn the library!"  
**

**

* * *

**

She shouted. Several people turned to look at the petite, pale-blonde haired girl walking down the path. Ino Yamanaka cursed some more, not caring if she offended the people she passed by.

"I'll have Asuma-sensei's head for this..." She growled.

It's not that she disliked the library. Oh, yes, she acknowledged it as a place of wisdom... of learning...of great… of great...

snore

If only the place had more life in it... more fun. Then, she'd actually be interested to enter the ancient structure.

That must have been it.

_'Everything is just so ancient. So old.'_ She wrinkled her nose in distaste. She was never one to religiously follow tradition, old ways and customs...

Anything that meant _'in the past'_ coincided with _'so restricting' _to her.

She lived in the present time.

With her unconventional ninja suit - her dark purple outfit, with a top that showed much of her pale skin, and skirt that would've revealed too much if it weren't for the request of her scandalized, overprotective father to wear bandages to cover her up. Ino didn't mind the request.

It was still stylishly modern.

_Oh yes_. Ino Yamanaka was the embodiment of your modern day kunoichi.

Her mother once commented on her daughter's fashion sense.. Perhaps she should have been a designer? The profession would have suited a girl like Ino more… A civilian living a peaceful life, maybe even become a devout housewife just like her mom…

Leave the risks, danger, and dirty work to the nins of the Hidden Leaf Village.

Too bad she was papa's little girl.

Inoshi Yamanaka, the head of one of the most respected clans in the village, was also one of the most revered jounins of Konoha. The jutsus of their clan focused on the mind. One of their well known moves, the Shintenshin, was a signature technique of the Yamanaka bloodline that had served the Hidden Leaf Village countless times, in countless battles...

Ino inhaled deeply. She swelled with pride.

_Screw_ fashion designing.

She will definitely be a respected jounin like her father someday.

She exhaled loudly, sighing.

_'Yeah... someday.'_

She knew what she had to do. Work hard. Do her best. And work hard...

She just had to make sure she accomplished all the tasks given to her like the good little genin she's expected to be.

Then why was it so… so…

How did her teammate, and childhood friend put it?

"..Troublesome."

She sighed. She wished that there was some sort of short-cut... not that she was lazy…it's just that these missions were so much of a hassle. Genin tasks, a.k.a. D-missions, a.k.a. exhaustingly boring, ordinary work was a hassle.

She wanted action.

She wanted adventure.

… Not a stinking fieldtrip to the library!

Ino Yamanaka grumbled. Whined. Complained.

But she knew better... nothing was going to change.

_'Condemned to slavery inside a decomposing library...'_ she thought with disdain.

She just wanted to get things over and done with so she could go back to training.

With a fervent prayer that things go her way today, she set off to complete her mission.

* * *

End notes: I guess that wasn't so bad : ) …It was supposed to be a one-shot… but, hehe, I got carried away and will probably a make multi-chaptered one. 

Review please! I need some feedback. Constructive criticism is welcomed. Flames will be used to fry quail eggs and make my fave Filipino delicacy, **_kwek-kweks!_** Yummy : )


	2. The House of Nuts

Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Naruto, and "The House of Nuts" franchise doesn't belong to me either.

Author's notes: The story, and plot, which by the way isn't clear yet, is mine. Any similarity with other stories is purely unintentional. This is a Naruto/Ino by the way… so heads up for those who ain't interested with the pairing. Now is the perfect time for you to click the 'Back' button.

I decided to write a story about the pair because… well… I'm addicted to them now. Mwahaha. And there seems to be a shortage of stories about the pairing. Mwahaha.

Somnus says thank you to:

**Darkman **– I'll try to write more chapters…  thanks!

**Cail Jol **– I love them too!  I think they'd make a nice couple…

**The PhantomHokage** – thank you, Hokage, sir 

**conlan0414863** – honestly? I don't know where it's going either..haha.

**Kaara **– thank you very much for your comments! Wish you luck in hunting down your own librarian of doom :P Warning though, they might bite. You might get rabies.

**Meinos877** – Hahahahah… you're review cracked me up! XD that was so unexpected!

Anyway, on with the show!

* * *

She drummed her fingers, then glanced at the grandfather clock to her left.

She frowned.

In less than 5 seconds, she was at it again, drumming her fingers over and over, producing hollow sounds as her polished nails hit the polished surface of her mahogany desk in irritation.

'_What is with these genins these days?'_ she wondered. _'Why are they all so incompetent?'_

The old librarian mused in her post as she waited for the arrival of another leaf genin that was left under her care. She knew she was being unfair… judging this generation of leaf genins, fresh from the academy, so early and without any proof… But her recent encounter with a certain rude, spiky, blonde-haired Hokage-wannabe infuriated her so.

To her, Naruto Uzumaki was proof enough.

Her lips formed into a thin line and her eyes narrowed at the memory of what happened...

The boy, yet again, cursed the library, and the predicament he was in, mere seconds after she gave her last warning. She rushed back to him immediately. Furious, as her patience finally snapped, she gave him quite a scolding. However, Naruto was so used to being told off that he didn't shrink back in fear and respect… in fact, he simply shouted back. He made such a ruckus, and drew attention to himself as he claimed of how he was going to be the next, and best Hokage the village had ever seen. He would do the people a favor by establishing his first decree – tearing down the Konoha Public Library, and in its ruins, the best ramen restaurant shall rise, as well as more advanced nin facilities. And of course, the decommissioning of old, batty, librarians who really need to get out more.

She lost her cool, and made an attempt to grab the boy and strangle him.

But alas, old age kicked in and she stumbled as the blonde little imp jumped nimbly out of her reach.

Resulting to her getting well acquainted with the floor as she fell, face first.

Her fury doubled as the spectators laughed at her.

In an attempt to save whatever dignity she had left, she calmly stood up, glared ice and daggers at everyone (which promptly shut them up), and calmly walked towards Naruto who was still laughing hysterically.

She whispered… with a dark look, and a few, well chosen words. The boy suddenly became quiet.

She walked away, her words echoing in both of their minds.

"_No wonder everyone hates you, demon-vessel."_

Harana-san sighed. She lifted a wrinkled hand to her head and massaged her temples…

She was still lost in thought, when a slightly flushed Ino entered the room.

_

* * *

_

_  
Just a few minutes ago…_

She was late.

She was sooo late…

Ino Yamanaka berated herself as she sped through alleys and narrow pathways, trying to make short-cuts to reach her destination. She glanced at her watch, and cursed.

It was an hour past noon.

She was supposed to meet her client an hour and a half ago.

"Stupid Sakura and her humongous forehead!" she mumbled to herself.

The pale-haired kunoichi continued to curse Sakura Haruno in her mind…

Ino wanted to be punctual. She wanted to make herself look good in front of her client. She wanted to be praised; her record be so perfect that she'd sort of be the female star genin of her batch… being _late_ would be horrible!

You see, she was well on her way towards the library when she spotted something interesting…

Ino was walking casually… Glancing idly at her surroundings… and then –

A plump cashew nut.

With bubblegum-pink hair on top.

Ino, then, had to stop and blink…

And blink.

And blink some more…

Before she started laughing her ass off.

The said cashew nut, who was handing out leaflets and smiling brightly at everyone, immediately froze as she recognized the laughter. Slowly, she turned around and came face to face with her rival.

'_Oh, what a horror it must have been.' _ The blonde girl cackled as she remembered.

After Sakura displayed the wonderful hues of pink, red, magenta, and maroon, she demanded to know what Ino was doing there. The latter explained that she was on a mission… then returned the question gleefully at her rival.

Sakura blushed, yet again, before grudgingly explaining that she was on a mission as well. There had been so many assignments for the genin-class that Kakashi and the rest of the jounin group leaders had to divide the missions among their ward. Unluckily for Sakura, she had been given this…this _humiliating_ job.

Then, the pink-haired kunoichi bowed down… and sniffed?

Ino stopped her tormenting laughter in an instant. It must be truly crushing to be stuck, wearing an oversized imitation of a cashew as a costume for the whole day, while people who know you teased you as they pass you by…

She suddenly felt pity for her once-upon-a-time best friend…

Then she rolled her eyes. "You were always the drama queen, Sakura."

Sakura looked up.

"Did it work?"

Ino smirked. "Show me a new trick."

Sakura glared. "Whatever, Ino-_pig._"

"I said new, _Big-forehead._" She retorted.

…And so the usual banter commenced. The opportunity to make Sakura's day a living hell was too much to pass. Ino sauntered into the shop-slash-restaurant that Sakura had been advertising… the aptly named "House of Nuts".

There, she sat comfortably, ordered food, annoyed Sakura, and likewise, got annoyed by her. It was so sweet having the upperhand at her rival, that she carelessly lost track of time. Taking her food, she dashed out of the House, and headed straight to the village library, not without shooting back at her rival, calling her full name out loud for everybody to hear, and dubbing her as "Konoha's Village Nut".

Laughing, she took off with the happy thought of leaving a crimson-faced Sakura, and a bag of assorted goodies bouncing beside her.

And that was that, which now leads us to a flushed Ino Yamanaka.

* * *

Before she knew it, she was standing in front of the twin, colossal columns of Konoha Public Library.

Ino entered the building, and scanned the architecture of the place, guessing that it was probably centuries old. Amazingly, the building wasn't crumbling into pieces… Perhaps it was a spell or something?

She shrugged nonchalantly. Ino didn't know, and frankly, she didn't care very much.

She kept on walking forward, through the hall, passing huge glass cases that held armors from whatever armies, and ancient writings from whenever eras... Eventually reaching a double door that was slightly ajar.

She paused to knock, but opted to enter instead. _'The door was open, anyway…' _

Stealthily, she slipped inside the room.

Behind a dark wooden table that had been polished to perfection, she watched a frail-looking woman tiredly rub the sides of her forehead. Apparently, the grandma didn't notice her presence.

"Stressed out…?" she decided to make herself known.

Immediately, the woman looked up and stared at the newcomer.

"Yes, actually. It was exhausting to wait patiently for you." The formal looking woman squinted and adjusted her glasses as she eyed the young girl. "Ino Yamanaka, I presume?"

"Yep, that's me all right!" The girl smiled brightly. _'Impress, Ino… Impress.'_

"Well, Ino-san, you're late." She snapped.

The genin's smile faltered. A twitch forming just below her right eye...

She was beginning to dislike the old woman already.

* * *

End notes:

I'm off to write the next chapter.. Review, please? Thank you.

Constructive criticisms are welcomed. Flames will be used to fry quail eggs and make **_kwek-kwek's_**! Yummy!


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